Nina Yahalomi Klevitsky
Q. Share a little about your fam-
ily and educational background
I grew up in a very Zionist home.
My parents made aliyah in the 1970s
from the former Soviet Union. My
mother is from Latvia, so if you tell
her she’s Russian, it’s a big no-no.
Mom is 60; dad is 72. They made
aliyah separately; my mom was
16 and came to Israel with her
family; my dad was a young adult
and came alone. From the start,
my dad was a part of the national
movement as Israel was absorbing
new olim (immigrants). In 1984,
he had the privilege of lighting the
torch on Yom Ha’Atzmaut on Mt.
Herzel.
I have a younger sister, 26 years
old, a talented artist who studies
visual communication at Shenkar
College of Engineering, Design and
Art. Growing up in a very Zionist
home, we were encouraged to vol-
unteer and became members and
very involved in the Tzofim Youth
Movement — Israel Scouts. That
activity was almost more important
than our studies in school — and
my mom agreed because she figured
we’d always get another chance
to improve our studies, but never
another opportunity like we had
with the Scouts.
When I was 16, I became a mem-
ber of the Israel Scouts’ summer del-
egation — the Friendship Caravan
that toured the U.S. and Canada
for three months. With Caravan, I
was actually here in Detroit, visited
campers at Tamarack and stayed
with Molly Chernow and her family,
who were my hosts.
That summer — traveling in the
U.S. and seeing so many different
Jewish communities involved in so
many activities and organizations
— changed my life. Up until then,
coming from a Zionist home, my
mission was to convince all Jews to
live in Israel — and if they didn’t get
there, I certainly would help them.
That was my 16-year old mindset.
But, after that summer, something
in me changed. For the first time,
I understood the strength of the
Jewish community outside of Israel
and, that, as a people, we need each
other.
That was a big switch for me. And
for a time, I thought I wanted to be
an ambassador. But I grew to realize
that I didn’t want to live my life in
other countries. My home base was
and always will be Israel. So, I found
a way to do both. At 17, after gradu-
ating high school, I spent a gap year
in community service, in a program
called Young Judaea, working and
living together with Americans and
Brits. That was another life-chang-
ing experience, and some of my best
friends today are from that program.
Then came my service in the
army. I was a medic and a com-
mander of a combat medic course.
I am now an officer in the National
Medical War Room and still serv-
ing in the reserves. After Ella was
born, I was free to go; but no, I told
them I’m not going anywhere. To
me, it’s very mashmauti [meaning-
ful] to serve. Now that I’m here in
Michigan, I’m on hold again. I do feel
that my work here is just as impor-
tant for the country as the work we
do in the National War Room. And,
if God forbid, there’s a war, then I’ll
have another choice to make.
Q: What brought you to Detroit?
Working with the Jewish Agency,
you don’t get to choose your assign-
ment, but they try to find you the
best match based on what they
know about you and the community.
They give you options, and you can
decline.
Years ago, Omer and I were invited
from the Israel Scouts program to
go to London. But the timing wasn’t
right. This time around, they offered
me Australia, and I said no thank
you. When the option of Detroit
came up, I got a call from Jenny at
the Jewish Agency, advising me to go
for the interviews. “There’s this com-
munity that’s a good fit for you — I
think you’ll love it, and they’ll love
you.” And of course, she was right.
Q: What do you tell people con-
sidering moving to Israel or mak-
ing aliyah?
I say baruchim habaim [blessed to
those who come] — welcome! But
do your research first, know where
and why you are going, know your
heart. I’m not going to solicit — but
to those who want to come to Israel,
I certainly welcome them with open
arms. Part of my job as shlichah is
to conduct aliyah interviews in the
community — people who are inter-
ested can come to me to start the
process with the Jewish Agency. •
New Year—New FedEd classes!
Here’s a sampling of
FedEd Winter/Spring classes
Go to jewishdetroit.org/feded for a complete listing
or call 248-205-2557 for a catalog.
JANUARY
Finding Sacredness in
Secular Song
Cantor Neil Michaels
Tribes of Israel
Ruth Bergman
Introduction to the Zohar
Dr. Justin Sledge
Total Beginner Hebrew 1
Bosmat Dovas
The Book of Exodus
Rabbi Joseph Klein
FEBRUARY
Our Jewish Holidays–
The Rest of the Story
Rabbi Joseph Klein
The Story of Hasidism
Professor Howard Lupovitch
MARCH
Foundations of Family Living
Rebecca Starr
Total Beginner Hebrew 1
Josh Berkovitz
Parsha Hashavuah
Rabbis and Educators
APRIL
The Invention of Judaism
Rabbi Joseph Klein
The Creation of Life
Jill Gutmann
How the Rabbis Rewrote
the Story of Esther
Rabbi Rob Dobrusin
A Crash Course in Israel
Professor Howard Lupovitch
MAY
Jewish Belief of the Afterlife
Rabbi Joseph Krakoff
The Archaeology of
Palestine/Israel
Dr. Michael Pytlik
To register: Feded.online or 248-205-2557
Vivian Henoch is editor of Federation’s
myjewishdetroit.org, where this story first
appeared.
jn
January 4 • 2018
13